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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bulb · calf · ground · rock · rush · bat · cold · fan

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. bat — the animal
  3. rush — hurry
  4. rock — music
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. bulb — for light
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. cold — not warm
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rock — a stone
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. bulb — for light
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. ground — a position
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. ground — crushed
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. ground — the earth
  24. cold — an illness

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com